Destinations known | Killing of US missionary John Allen Chau by Sentinelese exposes the main flaw of tribal tourism
Visiting a place to meet or observe its indigenous population for recreational reasons is an often exploitative and, at worst, perilous indulgence of our fascination with ‘the other’
India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an archipelago of emerald jewels shining in the Bay of Bengal, are known for their sun-bleached sands, for their thriving coral ecosystems and for being home to some of the world’s most isolated peoples, including the indigenous inhabitants of North Sentinel Island, the Sentinelese.
Not known for offering visitors – who are infrequent and always unsolicited – a particularly warm welcome, the tribe has achieved notoriety for the killing of John Allen Chau, an American missionary who first set foot on Sentinelese soil on November 15 and was shot by arrows in the days that followed. In his fatal efforts to “bring the gospel of Jesus” to the tribe, as Mat Staver, founder of a Christian tour programme completed by Chau in 2015, told Associated Press, the intrepid evangelist put not only himself but also the island’s inhabitants in grave danger. And although Chau was proselytising, herein lies the problem at the heart of “tribal tourism”, an often exploitative and, at worst, perilous indulgence of our fascination with “the other”.
Tribal tourism is best described as visiting a place to meet or observe its indigenous populations for recreational, rather than anthropological, reasons. For some, it is motivated by a desire to educate themselves in the many ways of the world; for others it offers the guarantee of an “authentic experience”, one that carries serious social media showboating potential; and for yet others it sates a purely voyeuristic urge. Regardless of the impulse that drives it, tribal tourism is rife in the Andamans.
Nevertheless, “the market in human safaris along the road is flourishing”, says Survival International.